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The
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Faith Leaders Speak Up for Good Schools
The following public letter, urging better support for
Pennsylvania’s public schools, wassigned by leaders of all faith groups in the
state. An incomplete list of signers follows the letter text.
"We, Pennsylvanians of faith from across the religious
spectrum, call on our fellow citizens to join us in our efforts to urge our
legislators in Harrisburg to increase state funding to school districts in need
across the Commonwealth. In issuing this call, we are bound together by a common
respect for the infinite value of each child in the sight of God, regardless of
background, and a common commitment to a just and moral society. Moreover, we
assert that a relatively minor change in economic policy would result in an
enormous change in educational opportunity for our children.
Pennsylvania once played a major role in the history of
public schools. In 1698, colonists opened the first public school in
Pennsylvania to provide educational opportunities for children who could not
afford private schools - the only schools then available. Citizens quickly came
to understand the vital role of public schools in maintaining our democracy.
Even today, the State Constitution charges the General Assembly to provide a
"thorough and efficient" education for every child in Pennsylvania.
Our public schools now serve more than 90% of all of our
children. Our ability to create and sustain a stable democratic society,
generate economic growth, and prepare the next generation for an increasingly
complex, high-tech and interdependent world, depends on the quality of education
our public schools offer. Without our commitment to them, all of us will be
losers.
Yet, today many children in Pennsylvania communities do not
receive the quality education they need and deserve. Three factors contribute to
this situation: First, there is gross disparity in the resources available to
educate children, based on where a child lives. Second, the state’s declining
percentage of the funding formula depends on property taxes, which vary widely
throughout the Commonwealth. Finally, Pennsylvania can ill afford to waste funds
on experimental reforms. Instead, we must focus resources on proven educational
reforms.
The first two factors deal with the inherent unfairness of
the current funding formula. After all, doesn’t each of God’s children deserve
to have a roughly equal amount of resources invested in his or her public
education? A generation ago, the Commonwealth contributed 50% of the average
school district budget. This is still the national average. Today, the
Commonwealth contributes only 32.7%.
Although the state’s commitment to public education is
declining relative to other major line items in the budget, it’s only part of
the problem. Under the current formula, local school districts must make up for
the state’s funding shortages by assessing property taxes. In districts where
there is little business tax base or high-value personal property, residents can
be taxed heavily and still fall short of providing comparable resources for
their children. Only six states have school funding as unequal as
Pennsylvania’s.
By some estimates, it will cost an additional $3-5 billion statewide if
students in high-poverty districts are to have the resources equivalent to those
enjoyed by students in affluent districts. The only fair way to generate that
level of funding is to shift the funding formula away from property tax and
toward statewide income tax to be redistributed as needed.
Finally, given finite resources to generate school budgets,
it is important that each and every penny is invested in proven reforms. Rather
than penalizing schools that operate in areas of extreme poverty, we advocate a
system based on the fundamental presumption that all children can learn. We
believe in clearly defined standards, assessments and accountability, but we
also recognize that small classes can be particularly helpful in the first few
formative years of low-income children. We support site-based management for
schools, and we demand quality teachers and administrators, as well as the
provision of health and social services. We recognize comprehensive early
childhood education, meaningful parental and community involvement, and
state-of-the-art facilities, materials and technology.
It won’t be easy, but it’s obvious that the Commonwealth
simultaneously must close the resource gap between wealthy and poor districts,
replace reliance on property taxes for school funding, and increase investment
in education reforms that improve student performance.
In each of our traditions, adults are charged with the
responsibility for all children. Education is an essential means to nurture each
child’s God-given potential. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the
future of all our children is a compelling moral cause in Pennsylvania."
Signers of the letter on Good Schools
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Rev. Roy Almquist, Bishop, Southeastern PA Synod Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
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The Rev. Dr. Helen Baily Cochrane, Executive Director, Greater Bethlehem Area Council of Churches
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The Right Rev. Charles Bennison, Bishop Diocesan, Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania
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The Rev. Dr. W. Wilson Bradburn, Presbytery Executive, The Presbytery of Carlisle
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Rev. Dr. Tony Campolo, President of The Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education
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The Rev. W. Darwin Collins, The Christian Church in the United States and Canada (Disciples in Christ)
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Rt. Rev. Michael W. Creighton, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania
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Brother Joe Detrick, Southern Pennsylvania District, Church of the Brethren
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The Rt. Rev. Robert W. Duncan, Diocese of Pittsburgh, Episcopal Church
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Rev. Richard Fernandez, Executive Director, Northwest Interfaith Movement
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Rev. Edward D. Gehres Jr., Executive Presbyter, Presbytery of Philadelphia
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The Rev. C. Edward Geiger, Executive Director, Metropolitan Christian Council of Philadelphia
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Rabbi James A. Gibson
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Rabbi Lena Grazier-Zerbarini
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The Rev. Gary L. Harke, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Council of Churches
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The Rev. Bishop Carol S. Hendrix, Lower Susquehanna Synod, ELCA
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The Rev. Dr. Harold A. Henning, Presbytery Executive
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The Rev. Bishop Neil L. Irons, Central Pennsylvania Conference, United Methodist Church
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Richard Jarvis, Reading-Berks County Conference of Churches
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Friend Thomas Jeavons, Philadelphia Annual Meeting, Religious Society of Friends
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The Rev. K. Joy Kaufmann, Director for Public Advocacy, Pennsylvania Council of Churches
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Rev. Hae-Jong Kim, Bishop, The Pittsburgh Area United Methodist Church
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The Rev. Bishop A. Donald Main, Upper Susquehanna Synod, ELCA
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The Right Rev. Paul V. Marshall, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem
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The Rev. Bishop Donald J. McCoid, Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
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The Rev. David E. Meerse, Presbytery Executive, Presbytery of Lake Erie
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Rev. Dr. F. Russell Mitman, Conference Minister, Southeastern PA Conference, United Church of Christ
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The Rev. Judson C. McConnell, Interim Presbytery Executive, Presbytery of Northumberland
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The Rev. Dr. Christine L. Nelson, Executive Director, Lehigh County Conference of Churches
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The Rev. Dr. Jack R. Rothenberger, General Conference, Schwenkfelder Church
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Ms. Jacqueline Rucker, Executive Director, Christian Churches United of the Tri-County Area
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The Rev. Robert P. Shine, Jr., Vice President, Black Clergy Association of Philadelphia
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The Rev. Craig H. Smith, Atlantic Northeast District, Church of the Brethren
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Mr. John Stoesz, Executive Director, Metropolitan Christian Council of Philadelphia
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The Rev. Gary Straughn, Pastor, Moravian Church of Lititz
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The Rev. Bishop David R. Strobel, Northeastern Pennsylvania Synod, ELCA
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Rev. Peter Weaver, Bishop, Philadelphia Area of the United Methodist Church
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The Rev. Dr. Lyle J. Weible, Conference Minister, Central Pennsylvania Conference, UCC
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Rev. David L. Wickmann, President, Moravian Church, Eastern District of the Northern Province
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The Rev. Randall L. Yoder, Middle Pennsylvania District, Church of the Brethren
The New People
Table of Contents, May 2002
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